For most twelve year old’s, they are spending their summer at the beach, on a family vacation, hanging out at the mall, going for ice cream, and enjoying their time off from school. For Denville residents Giuliana Verdicchio and Colleen McGavin, what started out as fun this summer has now become about their budding new business.

The two twelve year old’s were recently playing in the pool at Giuliana’s house and were looking for a new game to enjoy. They started to play their favorite game with a water bottle cap, but Giuliana’s dad was concerned about the cap breaking his pool filter. How would they continue to play a game they have come to love?

Time for these two twelve year old’s to get creative. After the bummer of not being able to play with a bottle cap, the two sought out ways to continue playing their favorite game that wouldn’t cause damage. Cue the Dibble disc, Giuliana and Colleen’s creation.

Dibble can be played by as many people as possible. The object of the game is for one person to put the Dibble disc at the bottom of the pool and the first person to find it that is located outside the pool must jump in and grab the disc before anyone else gets to it. Easy, simple, and a fun summer time game for all ages in the family.

“There are no rules to playing the game, we really just want everyone to have fun playing it.” Verdicchio said.

The two recently created social media pages and a website where the product is for sale. The miniature disc that is used to play Dibble resembles that of an ice pack. The girls even have some tips and tricks on how the Dibble disc can be repurposed when it’s not in the pool, a great ecofriendly option.

“Dibble is a multipurpose tool. If you need to keep your lunches cold or if you get hurt and you need an ice pack, the Dibble disc stays cold for a really long time. It’s perfect to use year round, not just for Dibble fun in the pool.” McGavin said.

The girls were invited by a local business, Sisters, to have a stand outside their storefront at the annual Downtown Denville Block Party in July. After receiving approval from Ryan Gleason, Executive Director of the Downtown Denville BID, Giuliana and Colleen came armed with plenty of Dibble discs to sell and guess what? The two sold out completely. Not bad for their first pop up shop experience!

“It was such a fun and great experience and our visitors to our table felt that our business was such a great idea. We got a lot of community support and we’ve really enjoyed the process. We got to meet so many people who really supported us and they were just as excited about our business as we were.” Verdicchio said.

As summer winds down and the two head back to the books and homework that await them at Valleyview Middle School, they hope to continue to grow Dibble and plan to stick with their newly established company. For these two, the creation of their business was much more than just a simple creation to pass the time during the summer months.

“We really wanted to encourage kids our age to get off their phones and social media. We just want kids to be kids again. We heard stories from our parents about their childhoods and we really found that important. We really wanted to create a game for kids our age to have fun without a phone.” McGavin said.

As if running their business hasn’t taught them enough, the two credit their parents with helping them through the beginning stages. From that one day at Giuliana’s pool in June to where they are now, the two are nothing but smiles. They also offered words of wisdom to other kids who want to start their own businesses.

“People really appreciate our game. We’ve had lots of positive comments. For other kids who want to start their own business, just follow your heart and if you believe in yourself and your product, you can do exactly what we did.” Verdicchio said.

The feedback from customers has been great so far. The two young entrepreneurs have been very impressed by the support of their company, especially considering their ages. Through their own business, the two were able to learn about money management, business and marketing skills, among others.

“We really learned about money and what it’s like going to a bank. We also really learned to have fun and why spend our time inside? We really want people to get outside and have fun. That’s the whole point.” McGavin said.

As the girls look to the future of Dibble, the two would eventually like to take portions of their profits and donate them to local charities throughout Denville. For more information on Dibble, visit www.dibblepoolgame.com or follow the two on Instagram at @DibblePoolGame. The two have also established an Etsy shop. Dibble discs are currently priced at $15.00 plus shipping.

“We’re both just so grateful to all our customers so far. All of the support has been really special. We really hope they enjoy the game just as much as we do. We really appreciate the feedback and we always want people to let us know what they think about our business,” the two shared.